DON’T CONTACT WITNESSES: HC

NEW DELHI: A Delhi court on Thursday barred Teri director-general RK Pachauri from entering the institution’s offices or speaking with any of its employees while police investigate the sexual harassment complaint filed against him by a female colleague.

Pauchauri was given protection from arrest in the case till March 27 by Additional Sessions Judge Raj Kumar, who also directed the Nobel Laureate not to “contact complainant, witnesses or tamper with evidence.” The court told him to join investigation as soon as he had recovered and said

the ministry has expressed a desire that Pachauri should step aside from the panel till a court of law takes a decision on the charges against him.

Former solicitor general of India Indira Jaisingh said the government should sack him to ensure impartial probe.

The engineer-turned-environmentalist, that the matter would be heard on March 27 and the stay would continue till then.

Investigating officer Pratibha Sharma submitted a status report in which it was said that complainant’s statement has been recorded before a magistrate, and that Pachauri was required for “custodial interrogation.” While “strongly opposing his anticipatory bail application, the report said that the Teri chief had “deliberately avoiding joining of investigation on the pretext of ill health” and his conduct was “not bonafide in following the process of law.”

AVANTIKA MEHTA

74, has not resigned from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation with whom he had been associated since 2009 as member of a high level panel on peace and culture. The UNESCO office in Delhi refused to comment, saying a decision would be taken at the body’s headquarters in France.